


The turned devil and her former prey

by aroseandapen



Category: New Dangan Ronpa V3: Everyone's New Semester of Killing
Genre: Akuma no Riddle AU, Blood and Injury, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-22
Updated: 2020-05-22
Packaged: 2021-03-03 02:22:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 968
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24327226
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aroseandapen/pseuds/aroseandapen
Summary: Maki was sent to Class Black in order to kill an ordinary girl, Kaede Akamatsu. Yet after meeting her and getting to know her, she found herself unable to. Filled with the overwhelming urge to protect her from the other assassins of their class, Maki swore to help Kaede survive to the end of the year and graduate.After receiving an Advance Notice of Assassination from one of their classmates and a confrontation that left Maki injured, the two hide in a secret pocket among the trees, just temporarily to recuperate from their clash.An Akuma no Riddle AU, and a fill for the Banned Works Bingo: sympathetic villain
Relationships: Akamatsu Kaede/Harukawa Maki
Comments: 4
Kudos: 28
Collections: Banned Banned Together Bingo 2020, Banned Together Bingo 2020





	The turned devil and her former prey

**Author's Note:**

> As a quick explanation for this fill, I felt like this was two-fold. 1. Maki, as an assassin, is one of the protagonists despite previously killing people, and is sympathetic here, and 2. the unnamed assassin currently after them has a fairly sympathetic reason to try and fulfill the goal of Class Black.
> 
> Reading/watching Akuma no Riddle isn't necessary to understand this fic. It's just about a class, Class Black, filled with 13 assassins and 1 ordinary girl, and the goal of all the assassins is to kill that one girl. One of the assassins decides to protect her instead. The assassins, before they make their attempt, must give their one advance notice to announce the attempt, and then have 48 hours to make their kill.

Maki pulled Kaede into the hidden alcove beneath the trees that she’d discovered while surveying the school grounds their first day in Class Black. Wind whistled through the branches, the area cool and damp in the shade. Grunting, she dropped Kaede’s hand, sinking to the ground to rest against a tree trunk.

“I think...” She gritted her teeth against the pain in her thigh, glad that despite the blood the gash was fairly shallow. “...we should be safe. For a moment. So you should rest and gather your strength while you can.”

Kaede didn’t respond immediately, her eyes focused on Maki’s injury. Deep worry and guilt filled those lavender eyes, so open and earnest that Maki had to jerk her gaze away so that she didn’t have to see it.

“You’re hurt,” she said.

“Obviously.” Maki didn’t mean for her words to bite, but the pain made it difficult to control her tone. She added quickly, “Don’t worry about it. I’ve had worse, I’ll live.”

Kaede knelt beside her, holding her hand out, drawing Maki’s attention back to her.. “Here, can I borrow your knife?”

“What for?” Maki asked, though she found herself handing it over anyway. Their fingers brushed as Kaede took it from her, and before Maki had a chance to react she pulled off her vest.

Maki’s eyes widened. Then Kaede began to unbutton her shirt underneath, causing her to suck in a quick breath to cool the heat that spiked in her chest. Again she looked away, deeply embarrassed and unsure how Kaede could so casually undress in front of her. “What--what are you doing?”

Kaede didn’t answer as she shrugged her open shirt off as well. Then, out of the corner of her eye she saw Kaede stuff one end into her mouth, holding it taut, and use the knife to cut a long strip out of the pale pink fabric.

Left wearing only a bra over her chest, Kaede dropped the knife onto her vest and shuffled closer to Maki. She laid a soft hand onto her knee. “Here, lift your leg.”

Maki understood and, despite the flustering feelings inside of her, obeyed. Kaede busied herself with wrapping the makeshift bandage around the wound. Maki winced as she tied it off tightly. Noticing her reaction, Kaede glanced up, murmuring out a quick apology before she turned her focus back onto dressing the wound as best she could with what they had.

Resourceful. Maki was faintly impressed, though it made sense. If so many before had targeted Kaede’s life, then of course she would be able to do something as simple as this.

“Thanks.”

Kaede nodded, yet there was no pride in her expression, only misery and guilt. Quietly, she took Maki’s hand in both of hers, rubbing her thumbs across calloused knuckles. Her hands were soft, a sharp contrast to the roughness of Maki’s, and her silent ministrations gentle. Everything about Kaede was softer and warmer than anything Maki had ever known.

“I’m sorry. If I hadn’t tried to talk her out of it, then you wouldn’t have gotten hurt,” she said, giving Maki a small, sorrowful smile.

Maki frowned, staring down at their hands. She couldn’t bring herself to pull hers away.

“Yeah, I wouldn’t have.” Maki sighed. Why was it impossible to stay angry at Kaede despite the irrational ways the targeted girl behaved? “But if I didn’t choose to protect you, I wouldn’t have gotten hurt either, I guess, so don’t let it bother you too much.”

Kaede’s guilty smile grew. “I thought I could get through to her. Before she gave me her advanced notice, you know what she said? That with her reward, she’d ask for the best doctors to save her brother. Her only family she has left.” All semblance of a smile vanished. Kaede hung her head, tears forming in her eyes. “In her eyes, if I live... then he’ll die and she’ll be all alone. It’s not fair. If I could help her--.”

“Stop.” Maki cut her off before she could continue her train of thought to its conclusion. Bracing herself against the wall, she stood, walking over to the pile Kaede made.

She took back her knife and tossed the vest and ruined shirt at Kaede. They hit her in the face, making her sputter as the fabric obscured her vision.

“Get dressed, there’s no time to pity her now. Remember what you told me at the start of this? That no matter what, you’d survive?”

Kaede managed to pull her clothing away from her face, blinking up at Maki as she nodded. “Yeah...”

“Then we’re doing just that. You tried to talk her out of it, and she made her choice. Nothing you can do now but keep your word. And now it’s my turn to keep mine as well--no matter what, I won’t let her touch you. I promise, got that?” Maki said, fixing Kaede with a steady look. She held out a hand. “Come on, let’s get moving. This place won’t be safe forever, so I’d rather not stick around here too long.”

Something soft and warm came to Kaede’s face, her gaze doting at she smiled up at Maki. Fuzzy warmth bloomed in Maki’s chest to see it.

“You’re right... thank you, Maki. Thank you so much for being by my side.”

Kaede took her hand and rose to her feet as well. She pulled the vest on over her head, leaving her other shirt abandoned on the ground. Then, turning from her, Maki led her by the hand from their hiding place, Kaede’s palm warm pressed against hers--the sensation somehow brought peace to her heart despite the situation they were in.

And now all they had to do was live. For the next 36 hours.


End file.
